NYWIFT Blog

NYWIFT Industry Screening: ‘Once Upon A River’ Screening + Q&A with Director Haroula Rose

Join us for a virtual screening of Once Upon A River and a Q&A with Director Haroula Rose, Star Kenadi DelaCerna, and DP Charlotte Hornsby, moderated by NYWIFT Board Member Amenya Makuku.

Based on the best-selling novel by Bonnie Jo Campbell, ​Once Upon A River ​is the story of Native American teenager Margo Crane (DelaCerna) in 1970s rural Michigan who after enduring a series of traumas and tragedies, sets out on an odyssey on the Stark River in search of her estranged mother. On the water, Margo encounters friends, foes, wonders, and dangers; navigating life on her own, she comes to understand her potential, all while healing the wounds of her past.

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NYWIFT Talks with Lauren Lake

In this week’s NYWIFT Talks, join the host of the Emmy-winning show Lauren Lake's Paternity Court. We’ll focus on Lauren's career in unscripted television and her activism for Women's Rights and Inclusion in Hollywood!

This conversation will be moderated by NYWIFT Board Member Maria C. Miles.

NYWIFT Talks are free for all to attend.

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2020 Creative Workforce Summit Day 1: Women Documenting the Vote

Join us for Day 1 of the NYWIFT Creative Workforce Summit with a welcome address by Maria Torres-Springer of The Ford Foundation Center for Social Justice and keynote by Laverne Berry.

Our first panel, Women Documenting the Vote, takes a critical look at films that address voter suppression and voter participation.

Moderated by Yahaira Jacquez of Reuters. Speakers include Lisa Cortes, Liz GarbusGrace LeeDawn Porter, and Marjan Safinia.

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2020 Creative Workforce Summit Day 2: Unionizing Nonfiction Labor

Join us for Day 2 of the 2020 Creative Workforce Summit to discuss  for Unionizing Nonfiction Labor. This panel examines the lack of organized labor for documentary and reality tv makers, the benefits and potential pitfalls of organizing, and collective bargaining opportunities that could exist in the documentary world.

Speakers include Maggie Bowman, Caty Borum ChattooAndrew GreenbergSusan Margolin, and Johanna Vanderspool.

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2020 Creative Workforce Summit Day 4: Executive Function

Please join us on Day 4 of the 2020 Creative Workforce Summit to discuss Executive Function

Decision makers at networks, funders, and production companies discuss the future of funding and greenlighting nonfiction projects, the challenges of the pandemic from their perspective, and how social justice movements and politics influence their decisions. 

Speakers include Carrie Lozano (Documentary Film Program Director, Sundance Institute), Dana Merwin (Program Officer for International Documentary Association (IDA) Enterprise Fund), Monika Navarro (Senior Director of Artist Programs, Firelight Media), and Sandie Pedlow (Executive Director, Latino Public Broadcasting).

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2020 Creative Workforce Summit Day 3: Authorship

Please join us on Day 3 of the 2020 Creative Workforce Summit discussing Authorship: Our Stories, Directed, Produced and Written by Us.

Women and BIPOC documentarians discuss new opportunities to tell their own stories through traditional (feature films, streaming, and cable networks) and new non-traditional (mobile phones, virtual conversations, and social media) formats. Emphasis on social justice storytelling, who gets to tell whose story, how filmmakers are adapting to the challenges of the pandemic, and the significance of telling stories now during the thriving Black Lives Matter movement and on the eve of the presidential election. 

Moderated by Simon Moya Smith. Speakers include Maria Agui Carter, Maria Finitzo, Nadia Hallgren, Shalini Kantayya, and Yvonne Russo.

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Webinar: The Business of Adaptations for Film and TV – Fall 2020

Agents, Hollywood producers and publishers are always searching for the next great story, but not all writers start from scratch. Oftentimes, ideas come from the things we see, read, write and hear. The challenge for many is how to transition these materials from their original form of a book, article, and story into a full-fledged...

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Woodstock Film Festival & NYWIFT Co-Present: “I Carry You with Me” at the Drive-In

Join NYWIFT for our first drive-in film on October 3rd! NYWIFT is proud to co-present a double feature screening of I Carry You with Me and Stake Land with Woodstock Film Festival.

I Carry You with Me, Academy-Award® nominee (and NYWIFT member) Heidi Ewing’s luminous, moving debut as a narrative filmmaker, follows a tender romance between Iván and Gerado, spanning decades. Starting in provincial Mexico and continuing as first Iván, then Gerardo, journey towards sharing a life together in New York City. The film, winner of two awards at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival, is an intimate love story, as well as a soulful rumination on family, sacrifice, regret, and ultimately, hope.

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Woodstock Film Festival & NYWIFT Co-Present: “The Sit In: Harry Belafonte Hosts The Tonight Show” at the Drive-In

NYWIFT is proud to co-present a screening of The Sit In: Harry Belafonte Hosts The Tonight Show as a special drive-in screening at the Woodstock Film Festival!

In 1968, Johnny Carson was king of late-night television. As host of the top-rated “Tonight Show,” he gave America mild humor and middle-of-the-road entertainment. But when Carson planned a week’s vacation, his choice of replacement host was no less than revolutionary. Black entertainer and civil rights activist Harry Belafonte was given five nights on air. Belafonte did not squander the opportunity; he booked guests calculated to change the hearts and minds of a country embroiled in racial crisis.

Although three of the five TV segments are now lost, director and NYWIFT Member Yoruba Richen pieces together the programs through archival photographs and footage, as well as contemporary interviews with historians, politicians and activists, including Whoopi Goldberg and Norman Lear. Indeed, the film captures a chaotic time in American history, drawing inescapable parallels with the Black Lives Matter movement.

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NYWIFT Talks with Executive Director & Co-Head of Toronto Film Festival Joana Vicente

Join Executive Director & Co-Head of Toronto Film Festival Joana Vicente for a conversation with Award Winning Writer/Director and Founder of Iguana FilmsMaria Agui Carter!

This edition of NYWIFT Talks is free for all to attend.

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HBO & NYWIFT Present: ‘Unpregnant’ Virtual Screening + Q&A with Director Rachel Lee Goldenberg

HBO & NYWIFT Present a Virtual Screening of Unpregnant followed by a Q&A with Director Rachel Lee Goldenberg moderated by NYWIFT Board President Jamie Zelermyer.

In Unpregnant, 17-year-old Veronica (Haley Lu Richardson) never thought she’d want to fail a test—that is, until she finds herself staring at a piece of plastic with a blue plus. With a promising college-bound future now disappearing before her eyes, Veronica considers a decision she never imagined she’d have to make. Filmmaker Rachel Lee Goldenberg is an Emmy® award-winning producer, director and writer.

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NYWIFT Talks with HR Expert Joanna Giordano

This event will focus on the resume specifically. Yes, it is the P.I.T.A. that everyone avoids, but it is extremely important for application and selection at the top of the funnel. Even a warm network contact may ask for your resume to pass along. Join HR Expert Joanna Giordano for a conversation with NYWIFT Board President Jamie Zelermyer!

This edition of NYWIFT Talks is free for all to attend.

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NYWIFT Talks with Julie Taymor & Kimberly Guerrero

Join 2007 NYWIFT Muse Honoree Julie Taymor to discuss her latest film, The Glorias, in our series NYWIFT Talks! Journalist, fighter, and feminist Gloria Steinem is an indelible icon known for her world-shaping activism, guidance of the revolutionary women’s movement, and writing that has impacted generations.

Taymor's film credits include Fool's Fire, Oedipus Rex, Frida, and countless others. Among her many theatre credits is her sensational Broadway adaptation of The Lion King.

This conversation will be moderated by NYWIFT Executive Director Cynthia Lopez. Free for all to attend.

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NYWIFT Talks with IFP Executive Director Jeffrey Sharp

In this NYWIFT Talks, join Executive Director of IFP Jeffrey Sharp for a Zoom conversation. Founded in 1979, The Independent Filmmaker Project (IFP) is the largest and longest running not-for-profit dedicated to independent film. We’ll focus on IFP and the future of digital learning within IFP.

This conversation will be moderated by NYWIFT Board Member Yvonne Russo and is free for all to attend.

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NYWIFT Talks 2020 Film Festivals

Welcome to NYWIFT Talks, a new weekly series to bring updated news and vital information about the impact of COVID-19 on the media and entertainment industry. Industry professionals will be in conversation discussing what you need to know about theatrical releases, digital advances, virtual tools, festival opportunities, production updates and more.  This edition of NYWIFT...

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I Used to Go Here Virtual Screening + Q&A with Director Kris Rey and Actress Gillian Jacobs

Bittersweet emotion and awkward humor abound as Kate (Gillian Jacobs) journeys through her past to redefine her future in this big-hearted fourth feature from writer/director Kris Rey.

Join us for a virtual screening of I Used to Go Here followed by a Q&A with Kris Rey and Gillian Jacobs, moderated by NYWIFT Board Member Gretchen McGowan.

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NYWIFT Talks with Cursed Director Zetna Fuentes

In this NYWIFT Talks, join director Zetna Fuentes to discuss her new Netflix limited series, Cursed. Based on the New York Times bestselling book, Cursed is a re-imagination of the Arthurian legend, told through the eyes of Nimue, a young woman with a mysterious gift who is destined to become the powerful (and tragic) Lady of the Lake.

The conversation will be moderated by NYWIFT Advisory Board Member Annetta Marion. This edition of NYWIFT Talks is free for all to attend.

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NYWIFT Talks Health and Wellness During COVID-19

In this NYWIFT Talks, join Dr. Christine Cyriacks, Allison Chawla, and Liza Bertini to discuss the health affects that COVID-19 has taken on us and solutions to mindfully clear your mind and soul.

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